Working on a Dream
Bruce Springsteen
By Daniel Grant
Much of the mythic appeal of Bruce Springsteen's early work rested upon the underdog aura surrounding his seemingly star-crossed career. Signed to Columbia as a "New Dylan" by the legendary John Hammond in the early '70s, Springsteen released two exceptional albums to almost total market indifference and was close to being dropped from the label at the time his epic third album, Born to Run, was released. However, far from capitalizing on the critical acclaim and media attention that instant classic generated, Springsteen next found himself embroiled in a years-long legal battle with his manager that prevented him from recording for over three years (a lifetime in the 1970's music biz).
By the time Springsteen emerged from his legal exile with Darkness on the Edge of Town in 1978, the musical landscape had completely changed. Disco ruled the charts and punk rock had won the hearts and minds of the more adventurous and experimental listeners in the marketplace. Springsteen set about carving out a unique place for himself that skirted the commercial mainstream while still selling large quantities of records to a diverse audience composed nearly equally of rockers, punks and big-haired Jersey girls. In short, he had the biggest "cult" audience the music business had ever seen.
By the time the planets aligned to make him the biggest star in the world upon the release of 1984's Born in the U.S.A., Springsteen had grown weary of the demands of the marketplace and his enormous fan base, so he dropped out at the top of his game. When he returned in 1988 as a divorced man pushing 40 with the underrated Tunnel of Love, Springsteen was a changed man. The last 20 years have seen the Boss release a series of records in a variety of musical styles, both with and without the E Street Band. Although several of these records have been of a consistently high quality, the passage of time and the changing musical landscape have left Springsteen looking increasingly isolated and out-of-step with the times. The fundamental problem he has faced is how to deal with being a highly personal artist whose fame has reached outsized proportions.
Springsteen's newest release, Working on a Dream, is his third collaboration with producer Brendan O'Brien beginning with 2002's The Rising. O'Brien seems to have created an effective working environment for Springsteen that has enabled him to record at a much faster pace than many observers would have imagined possible given Springsteen's notoriously slow and laborious recording process earlier in his career. O'Brien's work with E Street Band appears to be rooted in his ability to recapture the classic sounds of their earlier recordings in a shorthand way using a modern studio. Unfortunately, while O'Brien captures the sound, he often misses the feelings and emotions those earlier classic songs conveyed.
Like 2007's Magic (also produced by O'Brien), this feels like a highly efficient album. All the right notes are struck and there is undeniable craft in the writing and playing. However, there are few surprises and no revelations. This feels like the product of a group of very accomplished middle aged professional musicians who all like and respect each other. However, true passion of any kind feels missing. Bob Dylan was able to reinvent himself in the twilight of his career by following his muse into dark places as he raged against the dying of the light. Also, his choice of more adventurous collaborators, such as Daniel Lanois, helped him redefine his sound while remaining recognizably "Dylanesque."
Springsteen would be better served working with a master of analog recording techniques, like Jack White, rather than have his albums continue to sport the glistening sheen of a high tech digital studio. One of the primary reasons Springsteen's 2006 release, The Seeger Sessions, was met with nearly unanimous critical acclaim was the informal, party time nature of the sound and production. The musicians on that album sound like they are having a great time and that simply playing the songs is their reward, rather than expecting a number one record and a year-long tour. Working on a Dream, rather unfortunately, feels like the 2009 equivalent of the corporate rock Springsteen fought hard to overthrow back in the '70s.
Working on a Dream is front loaded with its best songs. The eight minute opener, Outlaw Pete, raises the listener's expectations that Springsteen has returned to the epic scope of his earliest work. However, the comic book quality of the lyrics and unfocused, everything-but-the-kitchen sink musical setting soon stops those thoughts in their tracks. The next three songs, though, are as good as modern day Bruce Springsteen gets. My Lucky Day, the title track and Queen of the Supermarket are a trio of tuneful and affecting mainstream rock tunes that are able to overcome the glossy digital production.
From there, though, the record meanders through a series of overproduced, under-written exercises that, while certainly of a respectable quality, are far below the lofty standards Springsteen set for himself long ago. The album closes on another high note, with Surprise, Surprise, a catchy pop number; The Last Carnival, a moving tribute to long time E Streeter, Danny Federici, who passed away during the album's recording; and the title song from the recent movie, The Wrestler. These high points make the listener wonder what might have been.
In the final analysis, the burden of history is probably an unreasonably heavy load for a nearly 60-year old rock singer to bear. That sounds more like a job for a super hero with an able assistant, both of whom are armed with secret weapons. However, I can't shake the feeling that when I look at the cover of Born to Run and see the Boss and his Telecaster back-to-back with the Big Man and his sax, that is exactly what I am seeing. I just wish they would have worked a little harder on this particular dream.
Springsteen plans to tour North American in April.
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